“Homeowners were literally falling over themselves to remortgage in October as the rhetoric from the Bank of England reached fever pitch.

“It’s a fine example of the wisdom of the crowd, as the public put pen to paper in greater numbers than at any time since the crash, and just in the nick of time.”

The Bank would go on to raise the base rate from 0.25% to 0.5% on 2 November.

John Phillips, Just Mortgages and Spicerhaart group operations director, said: “As a Bank of England rate rise became more realistic public perception increased and with it the need to ensure they had the best mortgage deal in place for the longer-term.

“Although there has been an increase in first-time-buyer activity, remortgage volumes are definitely a key component that is keeping the market at this level.”

House purchase approvals fell slightly from 66,100 in September to 64,600 in October.

Net lending secured on dwellings stood at £3.4bn in October, down from £3.8bn the month before.